


Patchwork

by Whisful



Category: Ensemble Stars! (Video Game)
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-05-12
Updated: 2020-05-17
Packaged: 2021-03-03 05:40:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,258
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24149857
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Whisful/pseuds/Whisful
Summary: An AU where Niki is stuck living with Rinne.Mostly short slice of life scenarios until some minor plot kicks in later on.
Relationships: Amagi Rinne/Shiina Niki
Comments: 15
Kudos: 54





	1. Bargained by oden

**Author's Note:**

> how do you write Rinne's goddamn speech style
> 
> puka puka man take me by the hand--

Wonderful. Just... wonderful.

The place was a mess, from empty to half-empty cup ramen containers, takeaway boxes or convenience store lunches, to clothes left strewn all over the place. It was as if Rinne didn't care.

"Uuu... what kind of place do you call this~? It's such a mess!"

"Aahn? Tidyin' up the place only for it to get dirty again is just wastin' time. 'sides, you can't really be complaining, it's _my_ place, after all, Niki-kyun~! Gyahaha!"

A tired expression mixed with mild irritation lingered on Niki's face as he walked in "That's not how it works, Rinne-kun... that's like saying there's no point in earning money since you're going to spend it all anyway, or in your case, lose it all at Pachinko... Ahh, I guess I can't really complain, it's either this dumpster, or a dumpster for real for me."

"Fufun ♪ That's right, people who draw the short end of the stick can't complain! But I guess you're lucky since ya got me, call it a jackpot!"

"Eh~? No wa~y, if it was a jackpot, then I hit the jackpot for the "world's most scummiest guy" as my prize!"

Whether this was a lucky outcome or not was debatable, Niki was lucky that Rinne essentially let him live with him _for free_ but... it was with _Rinne Amagi_. Honestly, you might as well call this a booby prize.

Niki had a stroke of bad luck when his previous apartment decided to kick him out on short notice, and every other apartment in the area wasn't exactly as affordable as the one he was originally in. Niki either had to move further away from his work place, adding transportation to his daily living costs - not to mention changing his schedule and more time for commuting, or he'd have to quit his job altogether and find a new one _and_ a new place to stay.

It was just such a big headache and really inconvenient for him, until Rinne heard Niki complaining about his situation and offered his place for Niki to stay in.

A place to stay for free for the time being in exchange for cooking meals? Hell, Niki loved cooking, he had to cook regardless to survive so this was a win-win no matter how you looked at it. But it was just such a good deal that Niki forgot deals that were "too good to be true" existed, and that the deal he was offered came right out of the biggest scum in the world's mouth.

Well, for now, Niki decided to at least check the fridge for ingredients, perhaps thinking about what to make for dinner would cheer him up.

That was Niki's second regret of the day.

It was full of alcohol, and nothing even salvageable to create _any_ sort of dish for dinner.

"Rinne-kun... do you have... _anything_?"

"Huh? Whaddya mean?"

"Please tell me you at least have rice..."

"If you're so curious, just have a look-see around - I can't remember what I have in the cupboards so you're basically pulling a lottery!"

"... It sounds more like a case of Schrodinger's cat."

And to Niki's surprise (not really) the cupboards only had... _more_ variations of instant ramen.

Letting out an audible sigh, Niki grumbled along with his stomach. No way in hell was he going to have just that for dinner.

"I'm going to get groceries..." defeated, tired, but the hunger and need for food was stronger, he waddled half-heartedly towards the door before Rinne called out "Where're you goin'? Ain't it kinda late to be wanderin' around, someone like you might get mistaken for a cute lil miss and get eaten while you're out there~."

"D-don't joke about something like that! I don't want to be mugged by some stranger, but I also don't want to starve to death in your home! And neither of those are going to happen!"

Niki was more likely to get eaten by Rinne with all the ridiculous "jokes" he made.

... They _were_ jokes, right?

"Niki-kyun~"

Before Niki could make it to the door - the escape route from this hell hole - Rinne caught Niki from behind in an awkward embrace.

"H-huh?! What do you want--"

As Rinne's hand seemed to wander down, Niki could feel Rinne's hand reaching closer to his thighs and he flinched, before...

"Hey, that's my wallet! Don't touch that, give it baaaack!"

As Niki began to fend off Rinne from his pockets, Rinne nonchalantly whistled and backed off before breaking into a snicker.

"What's Niki's property is my property, under this household, we share~."

"Ha?! No waaaay! What's mine is still mine!"

"Then call it 'rent', pay up already!"

Holding his hand out demanding Niki's wallet.

"That's not what we agreed on, Rinne-kun?! I don't even have that much on me to pay rent, you knooow~?"

Swiping the wallet from Niki's hand as Niki relaxed for a second, Rinne opened it up to find it pretty empty.

"Huh, yer not wrong."

Snatching it back, Niki grumbled while staring at his poor empty wallet.

"See~? So can you stop pestering me for money when I don't have any right now?"

Letting out a sigh, Niki wasn't exactly fond of being reminded of his financial status, because it was the exact reason as to why he was here.

"Tch. Guess dinner's on me then, ya really are one lucky bastard."

"... huh? What do you mean, Rinne-kun?"

Throwing on his jacket, Rinne began slipping on his shoes to head outside.

"You ain't eatin' what's in 'ere, and I'm cravin' some ramen and oden soooo..."

Niki watching Rinne getting ready to leave in shock, _Rinne Amagi getting food with his own money?_ No way. Niki wasn't going to complain, though. Food was food, and anything would be better than whatever was stashed in those cupboards for god knows how long.

Well, that's if there wasn't a catch, but for Niki Shiina, getting tamed with food was... sadly something he fell for pretty easily.

"Oka~y! But I'm getting groceries tomorrow, there's noooo way I'm living like this!"

Rinne didn't bothering replying, instead he waved a hand with a smile before finally exiting the apartment.

"... this place is seriously a mess."

If Rinne wasn't going to clean it, sadly that meant Niki would have to. Niki really hoped Rinne would make it back before either Niki starved to death, or had to resort to whatever was in those forsaken cupboards...

Number of days Niki has survived living with Rinne: not even one yet.


	2. French toast and domestic violence for breakfast

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Just a normal morning between dumb and dumber.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> the struggle to write Rinne is real.  
> I need my sparkly stone friend to write him for me.

The sound of humming and the scent of something sweet woke the slumbering beast up from his dreams. Not that he remembered what they were, though.

You know, seeing him from behind like this... _that_ looked pretty edible.

"Ah, Rinne-kun, you're awake now--" before a squeak and a quick slap on Rinne's arm followed.

"I'm cooking right now! Don't touch me! Do you want to get burnt or something~?"

Rinne had attempted to hug Niki from behind, still half asleep and honestly... from behind, Rinne almost thought Niki was his wife.

"Owowow~ I'm already burnt by yer words and that slap, Niki-kyun~, didn't know ya could be so feisty in the mornin'. What is this, domestic violence?"

Niki turned back at him with a furrowed brow and with a tired voice and rebuked "but we're not even married?! You're lucky I wasn't holding anything when you did that, otherwise you would have _really_ been burnt!"

"Then it's sexual harassment! Can't believe yer that kinda person, Niki-kyun..." as Rinne pretended to be some kind of innocent woman shying away behind his hands before cracking into a light snicker.

"I didn't even touch you anywhere _remotely_ that you could call it sexual harrassment?!"

"Nooo, ya totally did~... Gyahaha!"

Rinne smiled, shaking off his drowsiness. Talking with Niki in the morning was really pleasant for him.

"... You're not getting any breakfast, then."

"Hey, that's the rent ya gotta pay! You askin' for an eviction here, Niki~?"

Damn, he got Niki there. He couldn't really break the deal they made, that would be scummy and Niki had no interest of becoming like Rinne... defeated, Niki just sighed and turned off the heat from the stove.

"Whatcha make~? Smells real' nice. ♪" while following Niki dishing it onto two plates before adding a little extra something on top.

"Eh~? Can't you see? It's just pancakes and syrup. Nothing special, but it's really deliciouuus~ it'll wake you ri~ght up!" while happily humming and putting it onto the dining table. The kitchen and dining area were all clean, you could call it "Niki's space" since it's where Niki spent most of his time, other than the sofa, and compared to the rest of the house... it was spotless.

Rinne sat down while smiling, the last time he had a proper breakfast was... not in his recent memory.

Niki was a little spice in his life, honestly.

The clink of cutlery against the plates as Niki started to eat, his eyes and face filled with delight as he dug right in.

 _You know, it'd be nice if Niki looked at me the same way._ Rinne thought to himself as he eyed Niki eating so earnestly. Niki noticed the staring though, pretty quickly at that, too.

"W-what? Are you going to complain about the way I eat or something...?" furrowing his brows, Rinne didn't expect Niki to be conscious about something like that, though.

"Nah~, just thought how yer kinda cute eatin' pancakes like that in the mornin'. How come ya got more than me? Do ya like pancakes that much, or are ya showin' some kinda dominance by how much ya can eat?" maintaining eye contact with a smile still on his face. Niki's reactions were probably the best things to see.

And his adorable annoyed responses were the best thing to hear.

Niki's face was a little flustered from hearing a compliment, but he immediately redacted that feeling of, whatever the heck he was about to feel, after hearing Rinne's comment after. "Huh?! Nooo way! It's not like that! My body isn't good at taking in nutrients from food, so I have to eat more than a normal person, that's all~! I do love food, though~."

For a moment, he tried to continue eating but... Niki wasn't exactly good at being stared at, he made a small pout before retorting "what, do you not like pancakes or something? If you don't want to eat it, you don't have to." with a hint of nervousness peaking in his voice, possibly at the worry there was a chance that what he said was true.

"Aahn? Nah, nah~. Just thought it'd be a waste not savouring the look on your face before eatin'~."

"... d-don't say stuff like that! I don't understand you, I'm not some snack or anything like that! You should eat your food before it gets cold, otherwise it'd be a waste, gee~z~!" before giving up and deciding to continue eating.

But it was true, it'd be a waste not to eat it while it was freshly made. Especially Niki's food.

The past few days and the meals were varied, different, _exciting_. To have such enthusiasm in a mundane and mandatory part of life, to make it interesting and fresh every time, Niki was something special. It's the little things in life which made it worthwhile, after all.

"Didn'tcha make pancakes the other day, too? They were a funny shape, though." Rinne asked in-between bites. The pancakes were light, not too dry, not too moist. Perfection.

"... Eh~? Pancakes...? I don't remember making any while living in here--" before the realisation hit Niki "--those... were French toast, Rinne-kun."

Rinne looked genuinely _blank_.

"French toast? What's the difference?"

"Do you pay attention to _anything_ you eat?! They're reaaaally different?!" Niki expressed his concern and confusion with his tone and face quite clearly.

"Pancakes. French toast... same thing~." Rinne nonchalantly added.

"No, they're not~?! Look at what you're eating right now! _Those_ are pancakes, and when I make French toast again, you _will_ learn the difference!" before sighing for the nth time in the first hour of the morning "next I'll hear you saying udon, spaghetti and ramen are the same!"

"But they're all long stringy things in soup ya slurp--"

"No! No... please, just, stop."

Every morning just seemed to bring in new kinds of torture for Niki. Rinne was the gift that kept on giving... giving different ways to get headaches, that is.

"Ahh, I almost forgot that I'd be late for work like this~?! You're the wooorst! I need to finish eating-- and my coffee!" not realising how much time passed already from the small, yet sporadic 'arguments' with Rinne in the morning.

Whether Niki enjoyed a more calm and self-indulgent morning to himself, or the chaotic and eventful mornings shared with Rinne was... unclear. But Niki did wish that Rinne would at _least_ wash up even if he didn't ask.

"Right right, no need to get yer knickers in a twist! Ya got plenty of time if ya run~."

"Running just makes me hungry, thouuugh? It's such a waste of my breakfast energy! Actually, I'm wasting it right now talking to you~!" hustling into his coat and shoes.

Before Niki could finish running out of the door, though, Rinne caught his arm.

"Whaaat?! I'm in a rush, Rinne-kun!"

"Ya forgot yer coffee. ♪" handing it over with a small gentle smirk.

"... Ah, right. Thank you, Rinne-kun."

Number of days Niki has survived living with Rinne: maybe two, optimistically.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> what do u even write in chapter notes-- oh, right, if there were notes like "*= means _"  
> otherwise, thanks for reading, as usual. Slice of life isn't something I'm amazing at-- who am I kidding, what's writing in general?
> 
> Oh, this one's for my friend:  
> "Damn, this bitch really goin' for it."

**Author's Note:**

> If you're coming here for the "sin", let me save you the effort and let you know, no.  
> Otherwise, have fun, enjoy your stay until HiMERU throws you out.
> 
> Oops, ended up changing the rating a little bit since I realised there's a person called Rinne Amagi who may make more mature jokes. Like playing Twister.


End file.
